25th Amendment

Growing Rivalry Between Trump And Vance Not New In Presidential-Vice Presidential Historical Relationships!

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With the competition for the 2028 Presidential Election just months away, beginning after the Midterm Elections of 2026 this November, a growing rivalry between President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance is becoming quite evident.

As Vance plans to run for President, if he does not succeed by use of the 25th Amendment or Trump’s passing, it is clear that Trump has distanced himself from Vance, as Vance is the so called “dove” in his administration, who was not really supportive of the Iran War, which Vance is now working to try to resolve.

The history of Presidential-Vice Presidential relationships is rife with rivalries and tensions, including

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr
John Quincy Adams and John C. Calhoun
Andrew Jackson and John C. Calhoun
James Buchanan and John C. Breckinridge
Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin
Theodore Roosevelt and Charles W. Fairbanks
Woodrow Wilson and Thomas Marshall
Calvin Coolidge and Charles G. Dawes
Franklin D. Roosevelt and John Nance Garner
Franklin D. Roosevelt and Henry A. Wallace
Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon
John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson and Hubert Humphrey
Bill Clinton and Al Gore
George W. Bush and Dick Cheney
Donald Trump and Mike Pence

Realize that in the history of the Vice Presidency, only four Vice Presidents succeeded the President they served under:

John Adams after George Washington
Thomas Jefferson after John Adams
Martin Van Buren after Andrew Jackson
George H. W. Bush after Ronald Reagan

So the challenge for JD Vance to succeed Donald Trump by election, not succession, will be a long shot in the record of history!

Only John C. Breckinridge in 1860; Henry A. Wallace in 1948; Richard Nixon in 1960 and then 1968 (out of office); Hubert Humphrey in 1968; Walter Mondale in 1984 (out of office); Al Gore in 2000; Joe Biden in 2020 (out of office); and Kamala Harris in 2024, have been able to be the nominee of the party they served under as Vice President, and with only Nixon and Biden making it to the White House belatedly!

Donald Trump’s Verbal Threat Against Iranian Civilization The Most Shocking Utterance Ever Of A President, And Requires Removal As A Threat To National And World Security!

Ronald 83 Comments

Donald Trump’s verbal threat to destroy Iranian civilization, and send that nation back to the Stone Age, is the most reckless, dangerous utterance ever expressed by any American President. For any President to threaten mass murder and genocide, a war crime, is not something that can be seen as a “slip of the tongue”!

There is no forgiveness possible for this, as clearly, beyond any doubt, we have an unhinged, unstable, out of control, demented, dangerous demagogue who has control over nuclear weapons, and could destroy not only Iran, but the entire world in a moment of lunacy and out of touch with reality.

Every effort must be taken to force Trump out of office, as occurred with Richard Nixon in 1974.

It is clear that many people around Trump realize he is unstable, and there is dissent behind the scenes, including JD Vance and Tulsi Gabbard on the Iran War, but also others that quietly realize how dangerous Trump is.

Democrats and right wing Republicans that have spoken out on Trump’s horrendous behavior must work incessantly to bring pressure to force use of the 25th Amendment, and put the nation ahead of personal loyalty.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, Alex Jones, Megyn Kelly, Laura Loomer, Nick Fuentes—all horrendous, obscene individuals, and others like them—have condemned the Iran War and Trump’s rhetoric, and a few Congressional Republicans, Thomas Massie, Don Bacon, Ron Johnson as three examples, have spoken out as well.

Pressure must be brought on the entirety of Congressional Republicans and the Trump Cabinet, led by Vice President JD Vance, to do what is right, and it would, likely, help them in tough Congressional races.

But the future of the nation and survival of democracy requires courage and principle above personal considerations, on the level of those Congressional Republicans, led by Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona, Senator Hugh Scott of Pennsylvania, and Congressman John Rhodes of Arizona, who pushed Richard Nixon to leave office in August 1974!

Armageddon And Genocide Postponed, But Trump Is Danger And Threat To Entire World And MUST Be Removed From Office!

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For the moment, the danger of Armageddon and Genocide has been postponed for two weeks, but Donald Trump remains a dire threat to the entire world with his diabolical threats against Iran.

This has nothing to do with supporting the Iranian government, which is evil and despicable, but the thought of exterminating an entire civilization, as threatened by the unhinged, unstable, erratic madman President of the United States, requires action to remove him before he decides to follow through on his reckless threats.

When you have right wing extremists such as Tucker Carlson, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Candace Owens, and Alex Jones, all clearly dangerous advocates of extremism, taking a stand that Donald Trump needs to be removed from the Oval Office, it is clear that Donald Trump has gone much too far toward insanity.

And when Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson, always an extremist right winger says the same, and more moderate Utah Senator John Curtis agrees on the need for action, it is irresponsible for nothing to be done about the threat that Donald Trump represents.

We have never had at any time in our history a danger of this magnitude from within the US government, and the military apparatus needs to make clear that they would NOT follow illegal, unethical orders by the President of the United States to promote mass murder.

And evoking white supremacist right wing evangelical Christianity as part of the military, as promoted by reckless Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and President Trump bringing Jesus Christ into the equation, is madness personified, as America is based on separation of church and state.

There clearly were doubts from the beginning of people around Trump regarding going to war against Iran, but everyone demonstrated a lack of courage to speak up and challenge the President. But this must not continue, and the Cabinet and Vice President JD Vance need to invoke the 25th Amendment and take away the ultimate power from Donald Trump!

Donald Trump’s Cruelty And Lunacy Challenged By Pope Leo XIV!

Ronald 38 Comments

The United States and the world at large is living through tumultuous times with a cruel, inhumane President who issues lunatic utterances on a regular basis, undermining American Democracy, the rule of law, international stability, and threatening American National Security and World Peace.

The rant and hate promoted by Donald Trump on Easter, apparent willingness to commit war crimes on the people of Iran, and using the most obscene, foul language, should be an alarm bell, that leads to use of the 25th Amendment to remove Donald Trump from the White House.

At the same time, the world is inspired by the first American in the Papacy, Pope Leo XIV, who is promoting a humane, compassionate, sane view of Christianity, wishing to promote tolerance, open mindedness, and international peace.

It is clear that tens of millions of Americans, whether Catholic or not, are saluting the Pope, and wishing that he could restore the faith of Americans and foreign nations in the stability, morality, ethics, and common sense of the American Presidency, which has suffered massively in its reputation through the actions and statements of the President of the United States.

The idea that right wing Christian pastors promote the idea that Donald Trump can be compared to Jesus Christ is a totally crazy and dangerous concept. And the idea that such pastors justify the lack of compassion and tolerance of immigrants primarily of color from outside Europe is a clear indication of the crisis that exists in Christianity.

Instead of saluting political leaders such as Texas Senate candidate James Talarico, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, and Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock for their true depiction of the teachings of Jesus Christ, we see instead promotion of hate and division, and even ridicule of other religions, a true cancer on the idea of interfaith dialogue.

Deranged Lunatic Behavior Of Trump Requires Invoking Of 25th Amendment For The Good Of The Nation!

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On Christmas Day, seen as a new beginning by hundreds of millions of people in America and worldwide, it is a time for reflection on what America and the world have experienced in the past year of Donald Trump’s Presidency.

The list of outrages and illegalities and abuses that Donald Trump has promoted in the first year of his second term warrants a response that is decisive.

Trump’s deranged lunatic behavior has undermined American domestic and foreign policy, and presents a dire threat to American democracy, the rule of law, and international order.

Trump clearly is demented, and displays it daily in a multitude of ways, and every imaginable utterance and action only escalates to further alarm all sensible people, including many who failed to see the danger that he represented, but who now realize the threat that he presents.

But the 25th Amendment provides a method to remove Trump as mentally incompetent and dangerous, and while the elevation of Vice President JD Vance is not welcomed, as he is no Gerald Ford, it can be believed that his rise to the Presidency, while far from ideal, would represent a fresh start.

The belief is that Vance would wish to offer a new beginning, backing away from the worst atrocities of speech and action of Donald Trump.

The thought that Trump, with power over nuclear weapons, could ignite a nuclear war is horrifying, and despite what seems like total loyalty and sycophancy of the Trump Cabinet, it seems reasonable to believe that action could be taken, with the pressure brought by Republicans in Congress, who have shown growing discontent with the Trump Presidency, likely to increase in 2026.

As part of the NO KINGS Marches, which will escalate in 2026, the American people must bring pressure on the Trump Cabinet and the Republican Party, in unity with Democrats, to remove Donald Trump from office, similar to what happened with Richard Nixon a half century ago!

Gerald Ford, Succeeding Richard Nixon 51 Years Ago, Saved The Presidency!

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Gerald Ford, the 38th President, succeeded Richard Nixon 51 years ago, and saved the Presidency.

Appointed Vice President under the 25th Amendment, and approved by both houses of Congress in a bipartisan manner, Gerald Ford was the right person to be next in line after the resignation of the corrupt Spiro Agnew in October 1973, in the midst of the crisis of the Watergate Scandal, that eventually brought Richard Nixon to resign from the Presidency.

Ford was a 25 year member of the House of Representatives, and Republican House Minority Leader for nine years, when he was elevated to the Vice Presidency.

Ford handled himself in an appropriate manner, in his 8 months as Vice President, and he represented basic decency and honesty as the successor to Richard Nixon.

His wife Betty stands out as the most outstanding Republican First Lady in her public role in modern times, and while Ford was only President for less than two and a half years, he elevated the office for the future.

We could only wish that Mike Pence in the first Donald Trump term, or JD Vance now in the second Trump term, had the principles, decency, and ethical and moral standing that Gerald Ford presented.

Ford was not perfect, of course, and two of his young aides at the time, later, sadly, became highly controversial, under President George W. Bush. Dick Cheney as Vice President, and Donald Rumsfeld as Secretary of Defense, did not do appropriately by their offices, with both seen as abusing power. But this was a quarter century after they were aides under Ford.

Ford also took the controversial action of pardoning Richard Nixon, still a center of debate as to the wisdom of such action. Certainly, it helped to lead to Ford’s defeat by Jimmy Carter in the Presidential Election Of 1976.

At the same time, Ford appointed one of the best modern Associate Justices of the Supreme Court, with Justice John Paul Stevens, who served the third longest on the Court in its history at 35 years, and retiring at the age of 90, second oldest in retirement. Unfortunately, present Republican appointments, all six of them, by Presidents George H W Bush, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump, have been major tragedies and disappointments.

Ford also signed the Helsinki Accords in 1975 with the Soviet Union, marking a move toward detente in the Cold War.

Overall, this author and blogger would say that Ford was the most decent modern Republican President, since the time of Dwight D. Eisenhower.

His historical reputation, and that of his wife, as a decent Presidential couple, shines a half century later.

50th Anniversary Of Gerald Ford Becoming President

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In the midst of commemorations of the 50th Anniversary of the Richard Nixon resignation from the Presidency, not as much attention is devoted to the accession of Gerald Ford to the Presidency for the next two years, five months and 11 days, as the only President NOT elected President or Vice President.

Ford was approved to be Vice President under the recently enacted 25th Amendment to the Constitution, upon the resignation of Vice President Spiro Agnew, arguably the most corrupt, scandalous, and obnoxious Vice President in the history of that office.

Agnew’s involvement in scandals, corruption, and in attacks on the news media and common decency, was horrifying, and it was a great sense of relief that he was forced out in October 1973.

The selection by the compromised President, Richard Nixon, at a time when the Watergate Scandal was metastasizing, was a relief as Ford, the House Minority Leader, was well respected and admired by members of the House of Representatives and the Senate in both political parties.

Ford conducted himself honorably as Vice President for about eight months from early December 1973 until his elevation to the Presidency on August 9, 1974.

And while Ford would lose election for a full term to Jimmy Carter in 1976, looking back on Ford, it seems clear that he has been underestimated in history, and deserves a better shake from the American people and Presidential scholars.

His wife, Betty Ford, was a major contributor to the history of First Ladies, often considered the “best” Republican First Lady of modern times.

While many would not agree with all of Gerald Ford’s views and stands on issues and policies, he comes across as the most decent Republican President in the past six decades!

43 Years Since Reagan Assassination Threat, And Dangers Ahead!

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It has been 43 years since the last direct threat against an American President.

Ronald Reagan was shot by John Hinckley on March 30, 1981, and miraculously survived and recovered, although many observers think his later diagnosis of Alzheimers Disease may have been related to that shooting.

There have been threats against Presidents and other top government officials in the four decades since, thankfully without the kind of horrible experience that Reagan went through.

But the levels of verbal violence and threats has grown exponentially, and now Donald Trump has used violent rhetoric, incitig his supporters and threatening Joe Biden, federal judges, and others, claiming “freedom of speech”.

But “freedom of speech’ does have its limits, and there is a need to make that clear to Donald Trump and everyone else, on all sides of the political spectrum, that using incendiary rhetoric could lead to prosecution and imprisonment!

The fact that we have gone through the longest period of no turnover in the Presidency, and that the 25th Amendment has only been used twice, in 1973 and 1974, is a warning of the growing reality that the nation is likely to face growing odds of a transition that we have not faced in a half century since 1973-1974.

So the office of the Vice Presidency is more significant than ever, moving forward!

The End Of A Possible President Mike Pence!

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Ever since Mike Pence became Vice President on January 20, 2017, the possibility of his accession to the Presidency remained a looming possibility.

The unstable and negative behavior of Donald Trump made this blogger and author think Pence might succeed to the Presidency rapidly in the early months of the term.

The constant crises and two Trump impeachments also put Pence in line for the Presidency, under the 25th Amendment, or the forced removal or resignation of Donald Trump.

Mike Pence stood for the rule of law in his refusal to help Trump steal the Presidential Election of 2020 on January 6, 2021, and could have lost his life that day if the circumstances and threats of that dark day had turned out differently.

Pence stood for the Constitution, and that will be his historic significance.

But he also was too much willing to bend to Donald Trump otherwise, even though Trump was as different in a moral and ethical sense as anyone could be from the highly religious Mike Pence.

Pence had no chance to become President for the next election, and has decided to leave the race, and he will have little impact on the future of a party which has, in so many ways, abandoned its principles. The Republicans have gravitated toward a total political disaster by following in the lead of the disgraced, twice impeached, four times indicted, and totally immoral and unethical former President Donald Trump.

So Pence will be seen as part of a Republican Party that is now in the distant past, as the so called Reagan wing of the party’s history goes into the distance as a lost memory!

A Half Century Ago, The Nation Was Saved From Spiro Agnew!

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Exactly 50 years ago, the nation witnessed the resignation of Vice President Spiro Agnew on October 10, 1973, on charges of criminal conspiracy, bribery, extortion, and tax fraud, which led to a pleading of no contest to a single felony charge of tax evasion.

That moment, while maybe not reflected on then or since, in retrospect, was an absolute blessing for the nation, the Presidency, and American democracy!

Sprio Agnew was, arguably, the most dangerous and corrupt Vice President in American history, a man who worked to divide the nation and promote evil in a monstrous way, including attacks on news media, and being in general “an attack dog” for the corrupt intentions of President Richard Nixon.

Agnew employed racist language, reminiscent of later what Donald Trump would do, and forecast the right wing populism that would be used by Republicans in later decades.

Agnew attacked liberals and anti Vietnam War protestors, and was vicious in his rhetoric, reminding many of former Red Scare provocateur Senator Joseph McCarthy, and gained a reputation as “Nixon’s Nixon”!

Even now, a half century later, when this author and blogger gives lectures on Richard Nixon, and mentions Spiro Agnew’s name, it gets a negative reaction from audiences!

But what is often forgotten is IF Agnew had not been investigated and found to be corrupt, as well as his evil doings as Vice President, he would have succeeded Richard Nixon when he resigned 10 months later on August 9, 1974!

Instead, the nation was fortunate that there was a 25th Amendment, and that Gerald Ford became Vice President by nomination of Nixon and approval by both houses of Congress!

Gerald Ford proved to be a savior, being the right person at the time of the Watergate Scandal, to be the successor to a President seen as the most corrupt in American history, until the disgraced Presidency of Donald Trump surpassed Nixon in the level of venality! 🙁